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nI only saw the darkness studded with stars. Not only above me, but also all around me, even below me. Yes, I feel like I'm floating in space, but at the same time, it feels like my feet are on something.

nIn that quiet darkness, I heard a voice. It wasn't music, nor was it the sounds of animals or human chatter, but rather soothing ambient sounds. Similar to the sound of the wind but softer and sweeter.

nThen, a giant transparent white text appeared in front of me, hovering in the sky.

nHVISLAND: A VR COLONY SIM GAME.

nInitializing…

nMinimalist design, unlike titles from VR action games or MMORPGs that I usually play.

nI felt the scenery around me start to move. The stars become long stripes. The ambient sound I heard grew faster. Ah, I feel like I'm in a warp to move between galaxies at the speed of light. It's a feature I'm used to seeing in sci-fi movies. Well, even though in the year 2146, humans haven't been able to find such technology.

nBy the way, this is an exciting loading sequence.

nIt took a few seconds, and I had 'arrived' at my destination. Now, I'm in front of a vast planet. The planet is very similar to the earth, dominated by blue. However, I did not recognize the green, cream, and even white lands there. The shape of all that is different from the lands on earth.

nIs this Hvisland, the world's first artificial planet? A realm created by that Fringe Softwork company? They did say it was just a quarter of the actual earth, but I was still amazed to see it.

nOther texts appeared under the title of the game that was still floating in front of me; New Game, Load Game, Options, Credits, and Exit. Nothing special, just like the games in general.

nI pointed to the New Game section, which glows right away. When I moved my finger forward a little, the game title and the texts changed. I was now given two choices.

nGAME MODES:

nAll character backgrounds, stats, and trait visible

nThe real Hvisland Experience. You will only find the background of each character as you play this game. In addition, some character traits and stats will be hidden. You can unlock these traits and stats at certain events. However, some stats can only be seen by your observations.

nWell, of course, I chose the second one, if that's what the game developers wanted us to play.

nGAME MODES:

nPermadeath Mode

nNon-Permadeath Mode

nHuh? Does this mean that if my character dies or there is an unpleasant event in permadeath mode, I can't load to the point in time before those things happen? Hmmm …. I'm used to loading my game when my character dies in a game, primarily offline games. Permadeath mode might be too much for me.

nBut, maybe in this management simulation game, it would be more interesting if I chose something different? This game is about managing multiple characters, after all. The death of one character or several doesn't matter. Even if my colonists all die, they say another character will come to start all over again.

nAlright, I chose permadeath mode. Then, the words 'GAME MODES' were changed.

nTHE COLONISTS

nBeneath that texts, there were large cards displaying photos, names, and status bars. The photos and names keep changing while the status bars fluctuate up and down. It all happened so fast that my eyes couldn't keep up.

nI pressed the stop button under the cards. The alternation seen in the cards slowed down until I finally got my three characters.

nFirst, a young man with brown skin, long wavy hair, and eyes that are also brown. He also has a thick beard on his face.

nManu, 26 years old (Exiled Tribe Member)

nSTATS:

nRanged Attack: 10

/100

nMelee Attack: 40

/100

nConstruction: 53

/100

nCrafting: 35

/100 *

nCook: 5

/100

nPlants: 23

/100

nMining: 8

/100

nAnimals: 2

/100

nMedic: 6

/100

nTRAITS:

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nINCAPABLE OF:

n-

nHEALTH ISSUES:

nA scar on the left leg (Walking speed -19%).

nBelow the cards, an additional piece of information appears.

nThe * sign indicates that your colonist has an interest in skills related to a status. With one * their learning speed for a skill will increase by 15%, and with two * their learning speed will increase by 30%

nHey, Manu. Turns out you really like making things, huh? Why were you exiled? With your passion, you can learn to create valuable items for your tribe, right?

nWell, if you weren't exiled, you wouldn't be my colonist, anyway.

nI shifted to check on the second colonist. This time it was a woman with white skin, amber eyes, and long black hair. I must admit she is so gorgeous with unique facial features. Maybe I'll take her out on a date if she's a real girl.

nKatherine 'Kat' Takahashi, 19 years old (Crashlanded)

nSTATS:

nRanged Attack: 48

/100 *

nMelee Attack: 7

/100

nConstruction: 8

/100

nCrafting: 2

/100

nCook: 12

/100

nPlant: 3

/100

nMining: 6

/100

nAnimals: 36

/100

nMedic: 22

/100

nTRAITS:

nFlat Affect – Kat is less able to express her emotions like other people.

nINCAPABLE OF:

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nHEALTH ISSUES:

nSwelling on her left leg and a little head wound. (Will heal over time without any treatment, walking speed -5%)

nFlat Affect, huh? Is that what makes your face look expressionless, Kat?

nI then looked at the last colonist card. He is a white man with short blond hair and blue eyes. Perhaps this third colonist is the most interesting, even beating the physical attractiveness of Kat.

nSebastian 'Seb' Buttman, 30 years old (Naked Victim)

nSTATS:

nRanged Attack: -

nMelee Attack: -

nConstruction: 26

/100

nCrafting: 12

/100

nCook: 39

/100**

nPlant: 60

/100

nMining: 5

/100

nAnimals: 1

/100

nMedic: 30

/100

nTRAITS:

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nINCAPABLE OF:

nViolence – Seb can't do anything related to violence, such as shooting, hitting people or animals, and so on.

nHEALTH ISSUES:

nMyopia - Seb's eyes are nearsighted (-10% vision for long-distance).

nBruises on his face, body, right hand, and left leg (Will heal over time without any treatment, work speed -10%, walking speed -11%)

nI'm laughing. What kind of surname is Buttman? Did his family origins in the past have anything to do with the ass? And what does that mean by the naked victim? Would he appear completely naked? Why is he naked in the first place?

nAh, naked, which means he's not carrying anything. So, maybe he will not bring any resources, unlike the other two colonists. I'm guessing that Kat and Manu will bring in the initial resources to build the colony.

nShould I replace Seb? I saw the randomize button under Seb's information card. It's also under the other colonist information cards.

nI thought for a moment. Ah, maybe Seb will bring something interesting with his nakedness. Although he is peace-loving because he can't attack, at least two of his would-be friends can do that for him. He is also very passionate about cooking. People say good food is nutrition for the heart. I've read quite a bit about this game. The developers paid more attention to aspects of human emotion for the characters.

nTherefore, I chose the continue button and passed the randomize all button at the very bottom.

nLet's go. I can't wait to meet my colonists!

nI was so impatient that I chose the colony's location, the starting weather, and a few other things at random. The texts in front of me disappeared. Then, the planet in front of me spun a little, and a small red dot appeared on one of its landmasses.

nThe blue planet approaches me fast.. No, it was my body descending towards it.

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